The present invention relates to a battery recharging arrangement for an automotive vehicle utilizing solar batteries mounted on the vehicle, and more particularly to a battery recharging arrangement for an automotive vehicle to effectively utilize one or more solar batteries disposed at different positions such as on the roof or within the passenger compartment of the vehicle.
Generally, when an automotive vehicle is parked for a long period of time without running or after running at night on a busy road in the rush hour where start-and-stop operations are required repeatedly, the battery voltage drops, then the engine is apt to become difficult to start. In order to avoid such discharge of an automotive vehicle battery, it is very useful to utilize an auxiliary charging system comprising solar batteries. However, it is generally difficult to effectively utilize solar energy whenever the sun shines, because the vehicle may run or be parked in all directions, and the position of the sun varies; that is, the correlation between the vehicle and the sun varies at all times.
In addition to this, there is another problem that dirt or splashes of mud tend to come in contact with the solar battery surfaces, especially when other vehicles are passing the vehicle provided with solar batteries while running at a high speed on a rainy day. Therefore, there has been a need for a battery recharging arrangement for an automotive vehicle so constructed and arranged that solar energy can be effectively utilized whenever the sun is shining, regardless of the direction in which the vehicle is running or parked and the positions of the sun, with the solar battery surfaces kept clean at all times.